mass: 50 tons
movement type: Wheeled power plant: GM 180 Fusion cruising speed: 43 kph flank speed: 64 kph
armor: Mercury Weave Ferro-Fibrous armament:
2 Amdecker 300 Large Lasers 2 Ramsey-65 Machine Guns
manufacturer: Buhallin Military Products primary factory: Dieron (destroyed 2776) communications system: SP/2 HAYOT targeting and tracking system: Baltex K580 overview
Buhallin Military Products, a company renowned for their wheeled combat vehicles, introduced the Turhan in 2530. Designed in response to the Hegemony Armed Forces’ search for a new urban combat vehicle, the Turhan scored over its competitors with its organic infantry unit, allowing it to serve as an APC as well.
capabilities
Using multiple axles and wheels, the Turhan exerts ground pressure equivalent to a typical civilian prime mover, but the most notable feature is the way the chas-sis articulates. The Turhan’s designers had to make their vehicle long and narrow when faced with the challenge of designing a vehicle to navigate the narrow streets
its own problems, for such a vehicle would have trouble with the tight corners it would encounter. The solution was to include an articulating joint at the chassis’s mid-point, a decision that earned the Turhan the label of “the bendy tank.”
Unlike most combat vehicles of the era, the Turhan’s primary armament is energy-based, and it lacks the cus-tomary auxiliary missile armament. Twin turret-mounted Amdecker lasers provide the bulk of the firepower, with two machine guns installed for anti-personnel fire. After 2583, the tank was armored with the newly developed ferro-fibrous armor.
Time and again it has been demonstrated that ar-mored vehicles cannot operate without infantry support in an urban environment. The Turhan provides its own in the form of an infantry bay with a five ton capacity. The vehicle soon became a popular APC as it was able to transport a wide variety of troop types.
Deployment
The 2549 “September Revolt” was the first real test of the Turhan’s capabilities. Elements of the Fifty-first Dragoons Regiment attempted to take control of the Hegemony after rejecting the authority of newly elected Director-General Ian Cameron. The rebels failed to cap-ture key government members when they seized the Hegemony’s capital city of Geneva. Finding themselves isolated when their HAF comrades swore fealty to the new Director-General, the Fifty-first were besieged in the ancient city. As the days passed and nobody rallied to their cause, tempers began to flare, and soon the rebels were fighting amongst themselves. At this point HAF troops entered the city to stop the fighting. Unlike the rebel’s heavy armor, the Turhan could negotiate Geneva’s narrow streets with ease. The vehicle’s primary duty was to ferry HAF infantry into the fighting, but it was also pressed into service as a makeshift ambulance, while also being used to evacuate civilians from the fighting that was demolish-ing their historic city.
The Turhan continued to serve the Hegemony troops who were later incorporated into the Star League
troop transporter kept it on the front lines of the bloody Reunification War, and the vehicle continued to be an im-portant component of the League’s infantry divisions until the fall of the Star League.
ComStar inherited a substantial number of Turhans and, given the Com Guards’ combined arms philosophy, they proved to be an invaluable asset. Many were lost on Tukayyid, but their contribution to that victory ensured that they were amongst the designs used to rebuild ComStar’s shattered forces. As a result, the Word of Blake also pos-sesses many Turhans.
With the Draconis Combine’s military industry in chaos, Pesht Motors have converted several of their civilian production lines to produce combat vehicles. An updated Turhan is one of the first fruits of this effort.
variants
The Clans used the Turhan’s chassis as the basis for their Ku Wheeled Assault Tank, sacrificing the infantry com-partment for heavier armament.
Pesht Motors have started constructing the Turhan at their commercial freight vehicles plant on Unity, and they have introduced an upgraded version too. Using an XL fu-sion engine, it replaces the turret-mounted machine gun with an anti-missile system and a ton of ammunition. The infantry compartment is reduced to four tons, and a C3 master computer has been installed.
notable crews
private sandra ustus: An SLDF Turhan gunner with the Seventieth Infantry Division, Ustus was inexplica-bly struck deaf, blind, and dumb for five days in 2742.
Upon recovering, Ustus claimed the ghost of Jocasta Cameron had appeared to her and prophesied that First Lord Simon Cameron would be slain by an “assas-sin’s digging machine.”
The incident was all but forgotten until 2751, when Simon Cameron was killed by a malfunctioning Miner
’Mech. This, along with other similar incidents, fueled the creation of the Cult of St. Cameron during the final years of
173
MediuM Vehicles
turhan
Weapons and ammo location tonnage
2 Large Lasers Turret 10
Machine Gun Turret .5
Machine Gun Front .5
Ammo (MG) 200 Body 1
Infantry Compartment Body 5
Type: turhan
Technology Base: Inner Sphere Movement Type: Wheeled Tonnage: 50
Battle Value: 673
equipment mass
Internal Structure: 5
Engine: 180 10.5
Type: Fusion
Cruising MP: 4
Flank MP: 6
Heat Sinks: 16 6
equipment mass
Control Equipment: 2.5
Lift Equipment: 0
Power Amplifier: 0
Turret: 1.5
Armor Factor: 134 7.5
Armor Value
Front 30
R/L Side 29
Rear 26
Turret 20
MerkaVa Mk. Viii heaVy tank 174 heavy VEHICLES
mass: 75 tons
movement type: Tracked power plant: Vlar 300 Fusion cruising speed: 43 kph flank speed: 64 kph armor: PanzerSlab armament:
1 Class 5 Armstrong Autocannon 1 Harpoon-15 LRM launcher 1 Harpoon-4 SRM 4 launcher 2 M-3 Machine Guns manufacturer: Leopard Armor
primary factory: Terra (discontinued 2601) communications system: Teledon 11
targeting and tracking system: Baltex K400 overview
Manufactured by Terra’s biggest producer of armored vehicles, the Merkava Heavy Tank entered service with Terran Alliance heavy armor platoons in 2294. With the formation of the Terran Hegemony, the Mk. II became the keystone of the HAF’s armor formations. The Mk. VII earned a reputation for soaking up damage while continuing to fight and was upgraded by Leopard Armor several times during the Age of War. With the introduction of modern weapons and armor, the Mk. VII was slowly phased out of HAF service in favor of the upgraded Mk. VIII in 2465.
capabilities
The Merkava is a typical heavy tank from the Age
weapon—an automatic 105mm Armstrong autocannon—
supported by missile launchers and machine guns.
Where the Merkava scored over other contempo-rary designs is in the use of a fusion engine. Previously, mass-produced combat vehicles had relied almost exclusively on internal combustion engines. This was not due to the lack of more advanced technology, but rather because reactor maintenance in the field was dangerous and time consuming. The Mk. VII Merkava was one of the first ground vehicles to benefit from new low-maintenance fusion engines that were spun-off from the research and development programs that ultimately created the BattleMech.
Deployment
At the forefront of Director-General James McKenna’s campaign to reintegrate the systems abandoned by the Demarcation Declaration, which had limited Terran Alliance control to only those systems within thirty light-years of Terra, the Merkava came to symbolize Hegemony military might. The tank soon achieved an iconic status similar to that now enjoyed by the Atlas or the Mad Cat.
During a six-month campaign in 2431 to wrestle con-trol of Kentares IV from battle-hardened Federated Suns troops, the limitations of ICE combat vehicles were keenly felt. This prompted the introduction of the Mk. VII in 2435, which enjoyed great success against Capellan forces dur-ing the Battle of Tybalt.
Many of the now-obsolete Mk. VIs ended their days with planetary militias or as targets on the practice range.
Four were modified into remote-control target drones and participated in the first live-fire test of the Mackie pro-totype. Colonel Charles Kincaid smashed the converted Merkavas in a brutal exhibition that terrified even the drone operators.
The Mk. VII’s 2465 successor, the Mk. VIII, utilized a yet more advanced fusion engine also drawn from BattleMech research. The Mk. VIII continued to serve the HAF until the end of the Reunification War. Believing it was no longer practical to modify the aging design to keep pace with advances in weapons technology, Leopard Armor ceased production to concentrate on new vehicle designs. Many
states, while others were sent to Hegemony militia forces.
Few remained by the fall of the Star League, and those were cannibalized for their fusion engines during the Succession Wars.
Earthwerks has created a makeshift vehicle manufac-turing plant on Tiber, where they have produced an up-dated Merkava for the Principality of Regulus. Since the beginning of 3073, the new Mk. IX has been entering the Regulan Hussars in large numbers.
variants
Fitted with a primitive fusion engine, the antiquated Mk. VII had a top speed of 54 kph. Its primitive armor was no match for modern weapons, but its weapons were quite sophisticated, with the only significant difference from the Mk. VIII being a smaller LRM-10 launcher and SRM-2 rack.
The Mk. VIs, the last combustion-powered Merkava, had about the same weaponry as the Mk. VII. Those refitted as remote-controlled target drones removed the LRM launch-er and ammunition.
The new Mk. IX mounts a light fusion engine. This allows the autocannon to be replaced with a light Gauss rifle, and the SRM launcher has been upgraded with Streak technology.
notable crews
major theodore cameron: When the 132nd Heavy Armor Regiment lost its commander to a Capellan air strike during the bloody Battle of Tybalt in 2435, Major Cameron (a relative of Director-General Jacob Cameron) assumed command. Rallying his surviving armor, the Major led his troops from the front, driving through the Capellan defenses at Aswan Ridge and breaking the stalemate.
force commander niomi challenger: A survivor of the ill-fated assault on Gibson, Challenger has been assigned to command the newly formed 108th Regulan Armored Regiment. She now has the daunting task of training her green Tankers to face the Word of Blake and their terrifying Manei Domini infantry.
175
heaVy Vehicles
MerkaVa Mk. Viii heaVy tank
Weapons and ammo location tonnage
AC/5 Turret 8
Ammo (AC) 20 Body 1
LRM 15 Turret 7
Ammo (LRM) 16 Body 2
SRM 4 Turret 2
Ammo (SRM) 25 Body 1
MG Turret .5
MG Front .5
Ammo (MG) 200 Body 1
Type: merkava mk. Viii heavy tank Technology Base: Inner Sphere Movement Type: Tracked Tonnage: 75
Battle Value: 879
equipment mass
Internal Structure: 7.5
Engine: 300 28.5
Type: Fusion
Cruising MP: 4
Flank MP: 6
Heat Sinks: 10 0
equipment mass
Control Equipment: 4
Lift Equipment: 0
Power Amplifier: 0
Turret: 2
Armor Factor: 160 10
Armor Value
Front 32
R/L Side 32
Rear 24
Turret 34
jkr-8t jackrabbit 176
1 Holly Streak SRM 2manufacturer: Skobel MechWorks primary factory: Terra
communications system: Exeter Longscan 200 targeting and tracking system: Garret T15AJ overview
In 2763 the SLDF invited the Hegemony’s weapons manufacturers to bid on a contract for a new light ’Mech capable of both serving as a scout and supporting infantry and armor. Skobel MechWorks unveiled the first prototype of their entry, the Jackrabbit, the following year.
Skobel’s design was evaluated alongside those of several other competitors over the next two years. The Jackrabbit scored high on reliability and ease of mainte-nance, and the design received clearance for combat test-ing just weeks before Rim Worlds Republic troops seized control of the Terran Hegemony. Skobel’s factories fell to Republican forces more or less intact, and the Jackrabbit was among the designs Stefan Amaris ordered into full
capabilities
Since the machine was never evaluated in combat con-ditions, several fundamental flaws in the Jackrabbit’s design were not revealed until SLDF and Republican troops began to clash on the outermost Hegemony worlds. Designed to be fast while also providing long-range fire support, the Jackrabbit tried to be a jack-of-all-trades.
The Jackrabbit, however, cannot match the speed of fast recon units since it mounts a weapon heavier than any commonly found on such a light ’Mech. While the weaponry is adequate against infantry, it lacks the punch needed to deal with hard targets. The Krupp 150 Ferro-Fibrous armor provides excellent protection by weight, but the tonnage devoted to weaponry means that the light ’Mech cannot carry enough of it. Worse, weight con-straints forced the engineers to exclude CASE from the design. Dependent on ballistic and missile weapons, the Jackrabbit is unsuited to the role of a raider, and it lacks the special electronics that would make it stand out in the role of a scout.
Despite these failings, there was nothing fundamen-tally wrong with the basic chassis or subsystems. Indeed, technicians reported the ’Mech a pleasure to work on.
Deployment
Knowing that General Kerensky and the SLDF were fighting their way through the automated defenses of the Hegemony and might eventually reach Terra, Stefan Amaris had over five hundred Jackrabbits built to bolster his forces.
The weaknesses in the design were not known to his troops.
However, they soon became apparent as Kerensky’s troops battled toward their ultimate target. Many Jackrabbits fell to the expert marksmen in the ranks of the SLDF, and the lack of jump jets limited their mobility in the savage urban combat that marked the campaign.
Running down Jackrabbits soon became a popular sport among SLDF MechWarriors, and combat losses for the design ran to over eighty percent. Of those ’Mechs to survive the final battles, none were taken by General Kerensky’s troops when they departed from the Inner Sphere. ComStar inherited these when they captured
that were deployed on Tukayyid fared poorly against the Clans, and ComStar chose to radically redesign the
’Mech and create the Nexus. Since the formation of the Word of Blake Protectorate, the remaining Jackrabbits have appeared in the ranks of the Protectorate Militia.
variants
Rim World Republic technicians attempted to boost the Jackrabbit’s effectiveness by replacing the autocannon with a large laser, an extra heat sink, and a ton of armor.
When SLDF troops first encountered the JKR-9R amongst the packs of unmodified Jackrabbits, they nicknamed it
“the Joker.” About half of the Jackrabbits fielded by the Protectorate Militia are of this type.
upgrades
In 3055 ComStar modified the design to produce the Nexus to help rebuild the Com Guards following the heavy casualties they suffered in the historic battle on Tukayyid. Although marginally similar in appearance, the Nexus is radically different from the old Jackrabbit in performance.
The Word of Blake has recently introduced the JKR-9W.
Firepower is improved significantly by replacing the Class 2 autocannon with a light Class 5 autocannon and adding an extended-range medium laser to the right torso.
notable MechWarriors
lieutenant gregor savage: A member of the 18th Amaris Chasseurs (Death’s Head Regiment), Lieutenant Savage earned the dubious distinction of having more ’Mechs shot out from beneath him in battle than any other MechWarrior before him. He lost one ’Mech to an air attack, four to SLDF BattleMechs, one to a minefield, one to an ammunition ex-plosion caused by a damaged fusion power plant, and one to friendly fire.
Gregor’s ultimate fate remains unknown, as his body was never identified following the final SLDF assault. Some historians speculate that he survived once again and later escaped Terra amidst the confusion as the Star League